1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the field of clips or clamps, and more particularly to clips which have an integral biasing member.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the prior art clips normally have included a pair of arms pivotally disposed with respect to each other and supporting a pair of opposing jaws at one end. The arms of such clips are biased relative to each other with the jaws either open or closed, and require the user to overcome the biasing force to use the clip. Know clips usually require two or more separate components which must be assembled to produce the clip. For example, in many prior art clips, the hinge pivot must be inserted into the respective arms. And even when the hinge pivot is integral with the arms, the biasing member must be appropriately inserted and seated between the arms to provide the biasing force. In manufacturing such clips, the separate parts must be individually manufactured, matching inventories must be built up of the several parts, and they must be assembled and properly seated to form the clip. The labor incident to obtaining and selecting the proper parts and assembling them may add appreciably to the cost of manufacturing the clips.
In the present invention, the entire clip, including the biasing member, is formed (here, molded) in one piece. This reduces inventory requirements and facilitates a simplified assembly procedure which reduces the labor costs and the possibility of manufacturing error.
A prior patent, U.S. Pat. No. 3,279,479, issued to N. L. Solomon, discloses a one-piece clip including a flexible integral spring finger. In the several embodiments of the clip disclosed in that patent, the spring fingers are shown as extending between the clip's arms near the ends thereof. Because of the structural differences between those clips and the clips of the instant invention, substantially different force distributions are present, placing different stresses on the components. Furthermore, the prior clips are assembled by flexing the finger and urging the free end to properly seat in the receiving arm. This procedure is more complicated than the procedure for assembling the clip disclosed herein, with a consequent increase in the expense of the labor and the chance that a clip may be wrongly assembled. Also, with the spring member oriented as in the above-referenced patent, it is exposed so that there is an increased chance that the finger may be jarred out of its proper seating, or squeezed out of its proper seating if the arms are squeezed together too tight. This is not possible with the clip disclosed herein.